Dauphiné

Grenoble: former Palace of the Parliament of the Dauphiné

Dauphiné, historic and cultural region encompassing the southeastern French départements of Isère, Hautes-Alpes, and Drôme and coextensive with the former province of Dauphiné.

The nucleus of the province was the countship of Viennois, the country around Vienne (on the east bank of the Rhône River), which was originally part of the kingdom of Arles and a fief of the Holy Roman Empire. In 1029 or 1030, the southern part of the countship was enfeoffed to Guigues I, count of Albon, who extended his domain to include other parts of the kingdom of Arles. His great-grandson Guigues IV, count from 1133 to 1142, was the first to bear the name Dauphin, which was to distinguish his successors. The domain passed from the house of Albon to that of Burgundy in 1162 and to the La Tour du Pin family in 1282. By the end of the 13th century, the name Dauphin, now traditional in the ruling house of Viennois, had been transformed into a title, and the aggregate of fiefs held by them became known as Dauphiné.

The dauphins of the house of La Tour du Pin extended their domain and developed governmental and judiciary institutions. Having exhausted his financial resources, Humbert II (d. 1355) sold Dauphiné to the future Charles V of France in 1349.

Charles V began the practice whereby the kings of France ceded Dauphiné to their heir apparent. He was also the first to convene the provincial estates (assembly) of Dauphiné (1357). The dauphin Louis II, later Louis XI of France, established the Parlement (court) of Dauphiné in 1453. During his minority, Louis tried to exploit his territory’s quasi-independent status in his quarrels with his father, Charles VII of France, who finally annexed Dauphiné to France in 1457.

The estates of Dauphiné were suspended by the French government in 1628, and local control was weakened further by the appointment of an intendant, an important royal official, over the area. A meeting at Grenoble in June 1788, followed by the unauthorized assembly of the estates at Vizille on July 21, was one of the immediate causes of the convocation of the States General, which led to the French Revolution of 1789. See also dauphin.

Physiographically the region comprises the westernmost outliers of the Alps and borders the highest portions of the Alps in France, just east of Grenoble. It borders the Rhône River valley on the west and Provence to the south. The traditional farmstead of the massif of Chartreuse in Isère is built of stone and features a four-sided roof covered with small boards known as essendoles. Chalets in the valleys of the Isère and Drôme rivers are built of stone and crowned with distinctive gables; living quarters and stalls occupy the ground floor and grain is stored in the attic. Chalets in southeastern Isère are built of rough-hewn stone and covered with slate shingles; living quarters and stalls are housed under one roof.

Dauphiné is predominantly Roman Catholic, though there are large Protestant enclaves with Waldensian roots in southern Drôme. The principal town in Dauphiné, Grenoble, is a manufacturing and research centre and also has an important group of universities. Other towns in Dauphiné include Briançon and Valence. The region produces cereals, fruits, wines, and some cattle and sheep.

Regional cuisine relies heavily on cheese, freshwater fish, crayfish, mushrooms, potatoes, and fruit. Cheese from Saint-Marcellin in Isère is made from goat’s and cow’s milk. The liqueur of Chartreuse is distilled by the monks of La Grande Chartreuse, the motherhouse of the Carthusian order, near Grenoble. The liqueur is said to be made from more than 130 different plants; the formula dates from the 16th century. The patois of Dauphiné shows Provençal influence and is in decline. Italian is widely spoken in southern Isère.